Better elections

[Mary von Dorster]

One thing this group could work on is better elections in Connecticut. We had some problems with voting in Groton. In some districts there were long lines, and we heard of people who were unable to vote because they couldn't stand in line. Perhaps as a group we should push for early voting in Connecticut, or wider eligibility for absentee voting. A larger voting pool is healthy for democracy, and would help President Obama when he runs for re-election in 2012.

[Steve Wilmarth]

I agree. I think early voting proved to be popular and made voting more convenient in those states that allowed it. Imagine if all of those states had only allowed voting on November 4th. Many of those voters would have been discouraged and not voted. The right to vote is one of our most important rights. Many other countries either declare election day a national holiday so that people can vote all through the day, not missing work or other commitments, or allow voting over several days. As far as I can tell, early voting did not result in any harm to the system. Of course, early voting would favor first-time voters, newly registered voters, the very young, and perhaps the elderly. I would imagine that conservative interests would not want to see this as these voters may tend to be more progressive and liberal.

[Mary von Dorster]

I guess the next step would be to find a draft of a bill (see how they do it in other states), then find a legislator who would introduce it.